It’s not uncommon for employees to overspend on expenses when they go away for business. This might be down to confusion about what expenses your company allows, a simple mistake or they may have a valid business reason for spending that little bit more, either way you probably want to get a grip of business travel overspend. A survey of UK employees last year found that those who submit work expenses or have access to an expenses account, spend an average of £117 per month on unauthorised and inflated purchases. Some cases of over-spending are one-offs. But some employees may […]

Stressed and frustrated employees, overspending on expenses and even expenses fraud. These are all risks you face if you don’t get your company travel policy right. Without a carefully-honed policy, your employees won’t know how much to spend on what, nor to use any travel providers you might favour. Ultimately, it’ll be harder to plan your business budgets if you don’t control how much people are spending. On the other hand, a clear, up-to-date and well-structured policy – that everyone in the business knows about – will help your bottom-line. And remember, business travel is already complicated and stressful enough, […]

The joy of discovering a good app! It might be because it saves you money, entertains you or just makes life that little bit easier. If you have to travel regularly for business, it certainly helps to download a few choice apps and here are some that regular travellers swear by: LinkedIn: for checking out who you’re meeting Amanda Thomson, founder and chief executive of prosecco and champagne producer Thomson and Scott, says: “I always use LinkedIn as it’s used by the business community across the globe and means I can easily research those I’m set to meet prior to […]

Nothing says it’s the start of a holiday, or at least a blessed few days off work, like setting your email out of office assistant. Especially if you can get away with telling everyone you’ll be ignoring them for a week or two. It’s a quick job. But you might pause for thought. Do you write hi or hello? Do you add a colleague’s contact details, and if so, which one (and do you tell them)? And then you have to carefully craft a sentence about whether or not you’ll be reading emails while you’re away. Most people are honest […]

Is there one part of your job that particularly bogs you down? That wraps you up in red tape and endless paperwork, and leaves you tired and frustrated? It might be tax calculations, invoices or expenses. According to a 2018 survey of entrepreneurs running young UK companies, nearly two- thirds of them said they spend at least one day every month on such administrative financial tasks. Similarly, 55% of smaller business owners told a Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) survey in 2016 that their company’s growth is being held back by the amount of time they have to dedicate to […]

Executive airport lounges offer business travellers the chance to squeeze in some pre-flight comfort away from the bustle of the main departure lounge, but the cost can vary widely, our research shows. We compared the costs of executive lounges – as well as premium parking and other services – at 25 popular UK and international airports to find out which are jetting off with your cash and which offer better value for businesses. Dubai Airport tops the list with the priciest lounge, with business travellers slamming £200 onto their expenses bill to step foot inside. Closer to home, London City […]